Don't Look Back
by awaywiththemutiousfairies
Summary: due to a slight muggle related complication Harry must be sent to Hogwarts a few weeks early, while there he encounters 'evil' plots, conceited blonde purebloods and school governors balls. (like the dancing type) pretty much like books HP and RW friends then HG joins, DM is the 'enemy' (for now *evil chuckle*) DM/HP HG/RW (eventually) rating may change in future chapters
1. Chapter 1

Don't look back

**A\N: I don't own any part of harry potter, who belongs to the respective author (I love you J.K!), editors, actors and directors (and of course Draco- it's a shame he doesn't share!)**

**P.S please ignore the borderlines which may or may not appear- they mean nothing its just me being really bad with computers (I couldn't even turn one on until I was in secondary/high school)**

**So yeah enjoy- please no flames because my ****Aguamenti's a bit rusty.**

A small boy lies on his back gazing up at the spiders who glide across their silk webs which dangle gracefully down in gentle arcs, illuminated only by the light that filters through the crack under the broom cupboard door, motes of dust leisurely swirl as if dancing to a song only they could hear, undisturbed by the ebony haired child who watched contentedly.

Loud thuds above his head send the spiders scurrying for safety and muck falling from the ceiling cuts short the boys semi-trance.

_Dudley's birthday, how could I forget?_

The Dursleys had been on about it for weeks, the presents, the food, the lack of Harry, it all had to be perfect for their little 'Dudders'. But, from the sound of it, their little plan had gone wrong and Harry couldn't help but smile slightly at this fact, because what when wrong for his family tended to be good news for him.

The door of the cupboard was wrenched open at a great force and light flooded in temporarily blinding the 10-and-a-bit year old before the huge silhouette of his uncle Vernon blocks out the light and yanks him out of the dingy cupboard and slams him against the wall of the hall

"You better behave boy…" Vernon growls, squinting at his nephew with his beady washed out blue eyes.

Err… yes sir?" Harry was confused normally he'd just be glared at then kicked out the door to make his own way to Mrs Figg's.

Harry could barely hold in his delight as he turned over the Dursleys bacon making sure it was just a little brown with only a trimming of fat for his aunt and a hell of a lot for his uncle and cousin, normally Harry would be bored stiff making sure everything was perfect for 'Dudders' but today as he'd found out earlier from the rest of the briefing/warning was not a normal day, he was going to the zoo!

For the second time that morning a series of heavy thuds alighted the poor stairs, _the pig in a wigs up then._ Harry thought smirking slightly as he slid the bacon on to the 3 plates next to the sausages, hash browns, toast, tomatoes, baked beans and eggs.

Harry crouched in front of the fridge rummaging through it for the ketchup when the explosion happened.

"Thirty-six. That's two less than last year!" His whale like cousin howled, his face contorting and salty tears pouring down his face leaving beetroot red tracks across his cheeks, reminiscent of an over sized baby.

_Oh __fantastic__ it's going to be one of __those__ days._

Aunt Petunia enveloped her Ickle Diddy Kins in her twig like arms and ran her fingers soothingly through his blonde hair cooing to him the whole while and Vernon stumbled over his own feet to repair the 'damage' done to his son's birthday. What neither of them noticed was the sly smirk plastered all over his face and glint of smugness that shone in the same watery blue eyes as his fathers.

_I hate you so much Dudley._

Harry tried to put as much loathing into the glare he sent his cousin but it only caused the blonde beach ball to grin. In truth he didn't really hate him- simply dislike him to the extent that when he was five he attempted to push Dudley into a pond then force feed him frogspawn, needless to say it didn't work because;

1) Harry is and was a weedy specky toe-rag

2) Dudley is and always will be a beached whale impersonator

3) Fate hates Potters. Enough said.

Harry cringed at the memory, obviously being not one of his fondest.

Eventually the faux tears receded then stopped all together with the promise of ice creams and more presents. Harry put their respective breakfasts in front of them on the table and started to wash up the pans when the familiar cry of outrage from his cousin Dudley drew his attention back to the flabby git.

"Potter left the crusts on!" Dudley stabbed at the toast on his plate.

"Come on Pumpkin it will make your hair long and curly!"

"I'm _not_ eating it! I will _not_ look like _him."_

_Firstly my hair is __not__ curly or __long__ is it just __messy__. _Harry mentally growled.

"Fair point." Vernon smiled leaning back in approval of his son's wit, the position he was in making the wodge of fat that should have been his neck 'swell' like a bullfrog.

_Fair point?__ Fair point?_ Cried the little voice in Harry's head as he regarded his cousin's flab-pack and then his own skin-and-bone appearance. _If that __thing__ ever looks like me I'll eat my own hat- wait, I don't __own__ a hat. _

It was a surprise Harry lasted that long with out his snarky comments breaking free, but he restrained himself- he was _not_ going to mess up his day out no matter what the Dursley or Dudley's rotten friend who would be around any minuet with his ratty face and permanent sneer did. Today he was _free- _sort of.

Excitement bubbled inside Harry as the finalising click of his seat belt sliding home sounded, he was going, _really_ going. He would see snakes and lions, fancy birds and frogs everything he'd only glimpsed when Dudley and his Uncle Vernon flipped idly through channels.

Did Harry know that what would happen that day would change every thing he knew and believed in an instant? The answer- Hell no!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**A/N: Heya! So here is the next chapter and I would have updated sooner but I've had a hectic week and I'm so tired that only my 10-year-old cousin tickling my feet could wake me (2 words. Not. Impressed.)**

**So yeah me no own I'm flattered if you thought so but no.**

**There is some Hagrid PoV and I have finally changed the plot a bit so enjoy and apologise for and iffy descriptions but I haven't seen and snakes in years except for on TV that I barely watch anyway. **

**ENJOY**

Harry was pleasantly surprised when the Dursleys, Piers and he stepped out of the plum Vauxhall and into the morning sunshine as he had only nearly caused _one_ car crash- one _little_ incident and all he did was mention a dream he'd had.

_Some people. It wasn't like he __actually__ thought motorcycles flew._

But that didn't matter, and was of little coincidence anyway. Today Dudley was behaving well- at least well for him, which was good enough for Harry, he supposed it was to do with the fact that his cousin would rather die than be seen 'crying' by his best friend.

Harry had never seen anything like it before- birds with feathers bright unlike anything seen in the English countryside with ruby, emerald and violet crests that swelled magnificently as they cried, their voices mingling together to form an orchestra of life. The sound had an eerie quality like that of one who had lost and forgotten their home, long since forgiving their captors, their hate and fear now replaced with pity of the creature that saw beauty in the wild but sought only to possess and tame it.

Small children ran from cabinet to cage, pressing sticky fingers and faces flush to the glass leaving greasy smears as they gasped the elegant flamingos while they dipped their long black beaks into the pools and strutted self importantly, staring resignedly at the new flock of human young.

"Mother-Father I want ice cream. Get me ice cream." Dudley's arrogant nasally voice whined behind Harry, his cousins demanding nature drawing brief scorning stares from other parents who were slightly disgusted at the fat child's lack of manners.

The raven-haired boy smiled happily at the cheap yellow ice-lolly in his hands before popping it back into his mouth as he strolled the paved footway outside the gorilla enclosure, few feet from his family and Dudders ratty friend who were all pretending they didn't know him.

_Two can play at that game, well 5 actually._

The Dursley's slowly left the primate section heading in the direction of a large single story out building that connected via large double doors that Harry had seen earlier and had found grand with its looming mantle and beautiful sign depicting trailing vines and curling snakes that faded to a dessert scene with lizards sunbathing and staring with small painted beady black eyes.

Harry was torn between running towards the reptiles and hanging back with the primates, his favourite being the gorilla that he'd christened Dudley despite being much nicer than his obese cousin. Eventually the alluring draw of the chance to see the reptiles became too strong for a mere 10-year-old and he rushed through the wide-open glass door. The excitement enough to push the thoughts of swapping Dudley with 'Dudley' and weather anyone would tell the difference to the back of his mind.

Harry watched his cousin beat his meaty fists against the glass of the enclosure and the pointy nosed Polkiss boy sneer at the unmoving resident of the tank before they slumped off loudly proclaiming the snakes 'boring' and 'lazy'.

_Like you can talk fried chicken._

"_I'm so sorry for my cousin, it must be hard for you with all those ugly faces staring down at you all the time."_

The Burmese python reared its diamond shaped head curiously tilting it slightly to the left and the cloudy film of its eyelid flashed over its jet black eyes. Its forked tongue flicking out and a series of low hisses directed at Harry flowed from its curved mouth the syllables clear and long.

"Oh my God look what the snakes doing!" Harry tumbled to the ground his wire framed glasses skittering away, while Dudley and Piers pressed yet again to the glass their hot breath fogging up the thick glass and their greedy little eyes roaming over the massive snake that tensed in ire at his new friend being pushed to the floor.

Rage and shame bubbled in Harry Potters gut; unshed angry tears glazing his green eyes.

_I will not be pushed around. Never again. Never._

And that was when the glass vanished and the 2 boys plunged face first into slightly stagnant water their shrieks echoed by flailing children and panicked parents.

Hagrid grumbled uncomfortably at Professor Burbage who was 'escorting' him to the Zoo with the bird who was currently perched inside her cage looking particularly unimpressed at her living space. It wasn't as though Hagrid _wanted _to give the bird away and the muggle studies teacher had insisted that Laguna would be better off in the muggle world.

"I'm sorry Hagrid but Laguna will be very happy here, and we have no idea how to care for muggle birds." Charity said comfortingly while patting the sobbing half-giant on the lower arm- it being the only part of him she could reach. They were attracting a lot of attention, Charity knew that she should have come by herself but Hagrid was the only one who could keep the tiny bird calm.

After calming Hagrid and Laguna down a bit who didn't like seeing _her_ Hagrid upset they found their way to the reception with a petite blonde woman who smiled brightly at them and asked how she could help.

"Professor 'ere felephoned yer yesterday 'bout Laguna." Hagrid replied gesturing in turn to the mousey Charity Burbage and to the bird that tilted its head questioningly at the muggle girl.

"Ah…" she flicked through some files frowning slightly at the unorganized sheets before locating a pink post-it note, "Ah yes the head keeper of the Aviary department will be able to see you soon, he is currently at the vets with an injured Macaw he should be back in an hour so do feel free to look around until then and I'll call Jonathan to look after Laguna."

5 minuets later Professor Burbage and Rubeus Hagrid minus a ruffled Laguna found themselves in the reptile section after the half-giant spotted a sign for bearded dragons only to be greeted by shrieks and a huge snake with dark patterning similar to a giraffes' slithering towards the door easily through the crowd that parted almost magically. Hagrid's day was finally looking up.

"Snake!" Hagrid boomed joyfully and everyone turned to stare their screams cutting off one at a time as they saw the huge crazy looking man with wild hair and beard pick the python up around the waist and sling it over his shoulders. The one family who hadn't noticed it fall suddenly broke the defending silence.

"HARRY POTTER!"

_Oh bugger._


End file.
